Born in Blood

Chapter 364 Relax

Slowly, the Kitsune raised its head.

Four of its tails suddenly perked upwards to the sky.

Its body started to shimmer with iridescence, despite having no fur.

Liam silently waited for the fox to get a hold of itself.

Like with Subject No. 421 and all others, the patients were often unstable during their initial awakening.

Although the toothy smirk indicated a success, Liam couldn't know for sure.

The fox's sharp gaze swept the underground hall.

Its large, golden eyes constricted maliciously.

So many Zeniths!

What exactly happened during these 9 years?!

In reality, the Kitsune didn't feel the passing of time.

It was in a comatose state where it felt nothing, but was subconsciously alive.

It still remembered being stuck in the 'Ora' Cave, surrounded by magical beasts and awaiting the inevitable.

And now, it was here.

It was as if one blinked and found himself in an entirely different place, in an entirely different time.

A low growl escaped the fox's throat while a powerful pressure filled the area.

"Oi," Liam called out from the side. "Relax."

The Kitsune didn't respond.

Its hostile focus was still on the hordes of Zenith cultivators, the room's pressure steadily increasing.

The Elders looked at the Kitsune with dark expressions.

Their hands were twitching in fragile restraint.

A fight was going to break out.

"Oi," Liam calmly called out again. "Relax yourself."

Silence.

Liam was being ignored.

"I said," Liam launched upwards at the Kitsune's muzzle, then punched it as hard as he could. "Relax!"

BANG!

The Kitsune's head suddenly lurched to the ground, as though struck by a hammer.

Liam landed lithely on the ground beside it.

The Kitsune's vision swam and his hand swirled with pain.

"I told you to relax, retard. They're with me," Liam told the beast as it tried to regain itself.

As it came to its senses, the Kitsune looked at Liam incredulously.

What was that power?!

Last it remembered, the human it made a deal with was a little squirt with high ambitions.

And now he radiated unbridled danger.

The Elders seemed to be in the same boat as the Kitsune.

They'd never seen a Mortal-ranked human capable of punching a Zenith beast's muzzle without getting clipped, but then again, the Shadow Demon wasn't one to follow common sense.

"Are you still the same human I made a deal with?" the Kitsune said with a slight growl.

It rose to its feet and stared at Liam with constricted pupils.

Liam undid the color change of his King's Eye.

A soft golden glow emanated from his right eye, paired with a sharp constricted pupil.

The Kitsune's eyes slightly widened.

The pressure emanated from both the Elders and the Kitsune faded away.

"You actually did it," the Kitsune said, smiling broadly again with a vicious set of teeth. "I was smart to trust you."

The Elders standing around looked amazed.

An animal was speaking!

Albeit, its maw was not moving. It was speaking through the mind.

The Kitsune's voice was, as Liam remembered, feminine.

"Didn't have to take both eyes to prove your point, though," Liam said.

"Well, you have them back, don't you? I would request back my eye, but you've earned it yourself."

"I wasn't gonna give it back, anyway," Liam said, but didn't wait for a response. "What are you going to do now?"

Silence.

The Kitsune smiled, then spoke in a solemn tone:

"Go home, of course. I want to create my own pack, live in silence and peace. Find a mate, and so on. I've attained freedom. Best enjoy it."

Silence.

Liam chuckled lightly.

"That won't happen."

Silence.

The Kitsune frowned.

"What do you mean?" it questioned darkly.

Liam met its gaze with a serious look.

"The place you call home now wants my neck. We're abroad now, distant from your homeland. There might be a war coming."

Silence.

"If you think you can enslave me," the Kitsune said, a dangerous glimmer appearing in its eyes. "Think again."

Liam scoffed derisively.

"If I wanted you in chains, you would be. You're no longer the strongest, and I'm no longer weak."

"The tables are flipped, now."

"You're in a tight spot, and I'll offer you a way out."

Silence.

The Kitsune bared its teeth in a definitely pissed off manner.

"I never said you couldn't leave, by the way. You're free to go wherever you want."

The Kitsune's malicious look slightly softened upon those words, but it still looked on the edge.

"But you won't make it far," Liam said. "Echoria has long closed their gates to Ilalians, and Ilalians are no longer accepting Echorians."

"What do you think they'd do if they see a giant, talking fox approach their borders?"

"Will they offer you tea, I wonder?"

Tense silence.

The Kitsune's mood definitely soured.

And it was getting angrier by the second.

"You humans are all the same," the Kitsune growled. "Seeking to enslave or use. Never to change."

Silence.

Liam smiled coldly.

"Except I'm not human anymore."

Only then did the Kitsune realize something was off about Liam's aura.

It made a slight shiver run through her spine, but she blamed her newly awakened mind for it.

"Plus," Liam said. "you owe me."

"Ha?! What for?" the Kitsune responded angrily. "I gave you the eye, took you out, and you resuscitated me. It was an equal deal."

"Look at your body," Liam said, pointing at the Four-tailed Fox's physique. "You have physical strength, and you get to keep your sea of consciousness."

Silence.

The Kitsune spent a good few minutes looking at her own body, fluttering her tail, and abruptly zooming around the hall in a circular motion.

The Elders watching were about to attack, but Liam stopped them with a look.

The more it ran around the limited space, the happier it looked!

'It probably never had a run since it went sick. It was stuck inside the dungeon for dozens of years, too,' Liam thought.

"There's more land outside. A full island," Liam said. The Kitsune abruptly stopped at Liam firmly. "I'll take this as a yes?"

The Kitsune paused…

Liam took it as a yes.